At the age of 9, he decided to become an actor. After a stint in art school, Hurt returned his focus to acting as a member of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He transitioned from stage to television—a well-received performance in The Naked Civil Servant landed him the memorable role of Caligula in I, Claudius and began his trend of playing unusual or morally ambiguous characters.

For fans of science fiction/fantasy films, Hurt is best known as the unfortunate first victim of the titular monster in Alien and as Winston Smith in the 1984 adaptation of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four. He had been heard on television as the voice of the dragon on the BBC Wales TV series Merlin. In 2013, he appeared as an incarnation of The Doctor, called The War Doctor, most notably in the fiftieth anniversary episode along with David Tennant and Matt Smith.